Tag: Van Halen

Yes, it is that time of year again. Hard Rock Hideout writers, Rob Rockitt and Ryo Vie pick our Top 10 albums of 2012. 2012 was a solid year for hard rock. There were many great releases, and quite a few above average ones as well. Trying to pick the top 10 is always a daunting task each year. After a lot of thought, discriminating, listening and re-listening, I have finally made my choices. If you haven’t added the 10 albums below to your collection, you are truly missing out on the best of 2012.

The following albums almost made the cut in the top 10, but are definitely worth mentioning.

10. Texas Hippie Coalition – Peacemaker – Texas Hippie Coalition released their third album Peacemaker in 2012, and in my opinion, in it is their best one yet. These boys are obviously still “Pissed Off and Mad About It”. Their anger has inspired a new set of killer tunes including “Hands Up”, “Damn You To Hell”, “Sex Drugs and Rock and Roll”, and “Paw Paw Hill”. Don’t miss this!! Check out the song “Hands Up” below.

9. Halestorm – The Strange Case Of – Halestorm’s latest effort The Strange Case Of isn’t without some cheesy tunes (especially if you have the version with the bonus tracks) but overall, it is a very strong release and Lzzy Hale has never sounded better. Check out the song “Freak Like Me” below.

8. Jettblack – Raining Rock – Raining Rock is no sophomore slump for the UK rockers Jettblack. It is a shame that this hasn’t had an official U.S. release. I am betting a lot of folks missed this one, and everyone who loves classic rock should check this one out. You can get it at Amazon.com.

7. Shinedown – Amaryllis – I loved Shinedown’s 2008 CD The Sound of Madness, so I was really looking forward to hearing Amaryllis. Amaryllis might be borderline when it comes to hard rock, but this is easily one of Shinedown’s best CD’s to date, and easily one of the best of 2012.

Check out the song “Unity” below.

6. Adler – Back From The Dead – One of the biggest surprises of 2012, is the debut album from former Guns N’ Roses drummer Stephen Adler. This CD has great rocking tunes, and no filler tracks. Adler outdid his former band mate Slash as far as new music in 2012 in my opinion.

5. Adrenaline Mob – Omertá – What happens when Russell Allen (Sumphony X) and Mike Portnoy (Ex-Dream Theater) join forces? They put out a damn find hard rock album that is NOT progressive metal. I think the non progressive style of Omerta surprised some folks, but give this one a few spins, and you can’t deny that this is a great album. Everyone should be talking about Mike Orlando, who is one incredible guitarist.

Check out the song “Indifferent” below.

4. The Cult – Choice of Weapon – With the Cult set on releasing time capsules instead of albums, I didn’t think we would ever have another new album from the band. Much to my surprise and utter happiness, The Cult released Choice of Weapon last May. In my opinion, this albums stands up to some of the Cult’s best work including Electric and Sonic Temple.

Check out the song “For the Animals”!

3. Charm City Devils – Sins - It took a few years for CCD to put out their second effort Sins, but I can gladly say that it was worth the wait. John Allen is a fine song writer, and pretty decent singer too. Sins leans more toward the modern side of hard rock but their isn’t a bad song on Sins. I love their remake of “Man of Constant Sorrow”, and have played the hell out of Sins in 2012.

Check out the song “Unstoppable” below.

2. Van Halen – A Different Kind of Truth – Everyone wanted to see David Lee Roth rejoin Van Halen, but it took a few years for the band to record some new tunes. I say “new” loosely with so many older demo cuts being used on A Different Kind of Truth, but as must people already know. OLD Van Halen is the best Van Halen, and A Different Kind of Truth is a great album. (And yes, I even like the song “Tattoo”.)

1. KISS – Monster – You wanted the best, you got the best!! Never in my wildest dreams did I think KISS would be able to put out another album as strong as Monster. I enjoyed their previous effort Sonic Boom, but Monster outshines that album by a mile. Easily my favorite KISS album since Revenge! This album is practically worth picking up for “Wall of Sound” all by itself. Hopefully KISS will tour for this album another year, and do more songs from it.

Ahhh, it’s that time of the year again. The end of 2012 is upon us. We’ve survived the prophesied apocalypse and now we can look forward to the dawn of 2013. However, before we can move ahead and discuss all of the great rock music that the New Year has in store, we must take a moment to reflect on all the brilliance that was delivered over the last twelve months. So, I am here to do my part. Below are my favorite albums from 2012. I can only hope that 2013 is just as rewarding.

#10 – Kill Devil Hill: Kill Devil Hill

There are few things more enjoyable than being blasted in the ears by the opening track of a brilliant hard rock record. With Vinny Appice and Rex Brown at the helm, you just know that good things are waiting. And good things are exactly what Kill Devil Hill presented. Loud, pure unadulterated, hard rock music delivered with a vengeance. This is doom and gloom meets modern rock minus all of the filler. Kill Devil Hill makes you want to rock out in your bedroom (or wherever you like to rock out) for hours on end. Once the album is over, it’s fun to hit repeat and let it play again.

Rock And Roll Is Black And Blue made me wish I had paid attention to Danko Jones sooner. This is an album that comes equipped with a blues/rock sound full of sexual vibe, hard rocking music, and a whole lot of fun. From odes to the beautiful legs on women, to the joy of waking up to another day, Rock And Roll Is Black And Blue comes stocked with uplifting songs that make feet move and faces smile. This is an album that forces the listener to feel happy by the time it is over. This record is a great reminder that music doesn’t always have to be deep and meaningful with insightful thought put into every word that is sung. Sometimes music is just meant to be fun, and that is what Danko Jones captured on Rock And Roll Is Black And Blue — a whole lot of fun!

Still relatively new to the music scene, The Veer Union delivered a gem this year with Divide The Blackened Sky, a hard hitting, highly enjoyable, modern rock record. The Veer Union have captured the modern rock sound and delivered it flawlessly on their sophomore effort. Divide The Blackened Sky is rife with dark and gritty songs that touch on themes of pain, retribution, and ultimately, hope. The Veer Union did not shy away from the challenge of putting out a heavy, dark, hard rocking record. If you’re looking for some enjoyable modern rock to add to your collection, pick up a copy of Divide The Blackened Sky.

Swedish Metal is great. When Swedish Metal is performed by Bullet, it’s even greater! Full Pull is the latest record from this band and it is grand in every sense. Exceptional guitars, heavy drums, and vocals sung by a voice that feels it is erupting from the soul of the Earth, all collide to make Full Pull an amazing record worthy of seeking out. If you haven’t checked out Bullet yet, Full Pull is a great record to introduce yourself to the band and their music. Part AC/DC, part Jackyl, Bullet is all great. If you like your rock loud and proud, you are going to love Full Pull.

One of the best musical surprises of the year was Charm City Devils’ Sins. I had not paid much attention to this band prior to the release of this album, and that was probably a mistake on my part. Sins is a hard rocking, tempo driven, fun record to listen to. Fun is the most important word in that equation. Sins is just that — fun. If you’re a fan of old school hair metal or hard rock music that makes you want to sing along while stuck in traffic, Sins is the album for you. Perfectly balanced with hard rock anthems, loving ballads, and songs that strippers will be dancing on stage to for years to come, Sins is a terrific album.

Man, these guys just keep getting better and better with every release. With their first release, Leave A Whisper, Shinedown took the music world by storm with massive hits and potential. Their last album, Sound Of Madness, was a phenomenal record that really made me a fan of the band. When the follow up was released earlier this year, I was skeptical that it was going to be as good as The Sound Of Madness. Fortunately for fans, it turned out to be even better. Amaryllis is a hard rocking album that is a pure joy to listen to. From the opening notes of “Adrenaline” to the closing moments of “Through The Ghost,” Amaryllis is a fun ride of rock and roll.

With the return of David Lee Roth to a Van Halen album of all original material fans rejoiced, and rightfully so. This was a true gift given to Van Halen fans that waited years for the return of Diamond Dave. And while their tour may have crashed and burned, and the absence of Michael Anthony is noticeable, that still doesn’t diminish the brilliance of A Different Kind Of Truth. This is Van Halen the way they were meant to be and A Different Kind Of Truth is a great follow up to 1984 even if it came many years later than fans had hoped. Packed with plenty of Dave scat, wicked solos by the great Edward Van Halen, and a song style that could only be pulled off by this band, A Different Kind Of Truth is one of the greatest records 2012 had to offer.

Okay, bring on the haters. Regardless of what a lot of people may think, I personally find Springsteen to be hard rock. He has all of the elements a hard rock band needs (heavy guitars, drums, solos, and an Us against Them mentality), so to me he’s hard rock. And since I find Springsteen to be hard rock, I get to put his latest album in my top 10. Wrecking Ball has done nothing but get better over the course of this year. While a lot of albums that are released in the early spring are long forgotten, Bruce’s magnificent Wrecking Ball is not. The record holds up well many months later and is still the highlight of my playlist for 2012. There’s a reason that Springsteen is the Boss—he knows how to write great music. Packed with nothing but potential hits, Wrecking Ball is a satisfying record and one of the best Springsteen has ever released. If he keeps making records this great, I’ll keep buying them, along with millions of other fans.

Kiss released an album of all new material, the follow up to the amazing Sonic Boom. What’s not to love? Haters be damned (you know the ones that call Eric and Tommy scabs), this is a phenomenal KISS record. Yes, it could challenge any of the classics for top 5 Kiss record. Yes, it is even better than Sonic Boom. Yes, Tommy and Eric sound terrific on this album. Look, we all love Ace and Peter and miss them very much, but they are out of the band and fans need to let them go. This is the new incarnation of KISS, and as far as I am concerned, they are incredible in their own right. Monster makes me hope that we get more new KISS music very soon. Psycho Circus never made me feel that way. If you haven’t gotten your copy of Monster yet, well, what the heck are you waiting for?

Let’s face it—when you listen to an album at least once a week since you received it, there is no way that it can’t be your favorite album of the year. Such is the case with Dead Sara. While I love Kiss’ Monster, Dead Sara beats it out. Simply put, I’ve never stopped listening to it. This album hit me hard from the first time I played it. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much because the record had been so hyped up by other bloggers, reviewers, and critics. Usually when an album gets that much hype it fails to produce the necessary results. Dead Sara, however, actually exceeded the hype. The last debut album that I thought was this good came from a band called Guns N Roses. Dead Sara has the opportunity to go down in history as one of the greatest rookie releases ever. Yes, the album is that fantastic. If you haven’t sought out Dead Sara, stop everything and order it online now. You owe it to yourself to start 2013 off with a bang!

Rock legends Van Halen have just released a limited edition 7-inch vinyl single of their new song, “She’s The Woman,” available for free starting Friday May 4th with the purchase of the band’s new album A Different Kind of Truth at participating record stores around the country (full list of stores available here).

Van Halen’s long awaited album “A Different Kind of Truth” has been out for a couple of months now. The band has released two videos “Tattoo and “She’s A Woman”. The Other half, aka Chickenfoot featuring former Van Halen member’s Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony, has also released a couple of video clips (“Bigfoot”and “I Need A Job”) since their album was released last September.

Which band has released the better videos? That is up to you decide. Cast your vote below!

To celebrate the release of A Different Kind of Truth on February 7th, Van Halen has teamed up with ESPN.com for some very special promotions. As part of the takeover fans can now stream 6 new tracks off the album, enter a sports “Tattoo” contest conceived by David Lee Roth himself, and rank the best David Lee Roth Van Halen albums. Check out the takeover here: http://es.pn/AvG1PQ.

Earlier this month Van Halen announced their return to the live stage with an extraordinary 2012 North American tour. The announcement was made during a once-in-a-lifetime performance at the intimate Café Wha? in New York City. Known around the world for some of the most iconic live performances in music history, the legendary rock band will begin their tour on February 18. Kool & The Gang will join Van Halen for select tour dates.

A Different Kind of Truth is Van Halen’s first original studio album with singer David Lee Roth since the band’s classic multi-platinum album 1984. The band recently released a video for lead single “Tattoo” which can be seen here: http://youtu.be/3WfQ-hV3WtA.

It is finally here! The album you have been waiting for since 1984…….. A Different Kind of Truth. It seems like I have been waiting for ages to hear David Lee Roth sing with Van Halen again. I enjoyed the tunes from the brief, but short-lived reunion in 1996, “Can’t Get This Stuff No More”, and “Me Wise Magic” . A Different Kind of Truth is exactly what I have been waiting for…… An album that sounds like classic Van Halen. While I enjoyed the Sammy Hagar years in Van Halen, I have always longed for Van Halen’s return to their classic sound. That is exactly what A Different Kind of Truth sounds like. Classic Van Halen! This album has a massive production, and will please most audiophiles out there.

I am sure there are many of you that would love to have an album that is on a par with Van Halen I. This album isn’t it. If you want a heavy Van Halen album, with tons of guitars and that fun party rock that Van Halen is known for, A Different Kind of Truth will put a big smile on your face.

I read where many folks were slamming the song “Tattoo”, and while I can understand other people’s opinions, I like the song. It kind of reminds me of David Lee Roth’s song “Sensible Shoes” from his 1991 album, A Little Ain’t Enough. It is a catchy song, but it is one of the lesser songs on this CD.

I have to admit that I like the original demo version of “She’s The Woman” better than this latest version. I miss Michael Anthony’s background vocals. This version is good, and if you haven’t the original unreleased version of this song, you will probably love it.

Alex Van Halen makes his presence felt on the song “China Town”. I have always though of Alex as an incredible drummer. He continues to show just how awesome he is by pulverizing his drum kit, with a super fast tempo, and pounding rhythms. This isn’t a song that would be used as a radio single, but it is one of those deep Van Halen tracks that long time fans of the band will appreciate.

“Blood and Fire” screams radio hit. This song isn’t super heavy, and this song could have easily worked in the Hagar years, but David Lee Roth owns this one.

“HoneybabySweetiedoll” has a strange intro, but this is the kind of aggressive VH tune I have been waiting to hear for years! I love this! “The Trouble With Never” is a catchy, heavy rocker that Van Halen should release as their second single. Those fans on the fence after hearing “Tattoo” will certainly jump on the Van Halen train, after hearing “The Trouble With Never”.

“Stay Frosty” has that same type of acoustic guitar style as the Van Halen classic “Ice Cream Man”, but nowhere near as good as that song (which is one of my Van Halen favorites). The song gets a little heavier towards the middle, but even with Eddie Van Halen’s awesome riffs, this song is still one the weaker tracks.

A Different Kind of Truth closes out in strong fashion with two heavy rockers back to back with “Big River” and “Beats Workin”. It often sounds like to be me that David Lee Roth is singing “Big Trouble” in “Big River”, but it is a cool song nonetheless. Eddie tears it up on “Beats Workin'” and rest assured, but the time this song ends, I am hitting repeat to listen to this CD again.

Thanks to the Van Halen clan and David Lee Roth for releasing the Van Halen album, I have been longing for. A Different Kind of Truth is a tremendous comeback album that I can’t stop listening to. All Van Halen fans should pick up immediately. Highly Recommended!

The wait is over! The first new Van Halen song with David Lee Roth in 16 years, “Tattoo” is now available for purchase at iTunes at this link! You can check out Van Halen’s new video for “Tattoo” below!!

After years of rumors and teases, iconic high-kicking rockers Van Halen are officially all the way back. Following an intimate club show in New York on Thursday night at Café Wha?, the group revealed that they will hit the road for a 45-date tour beginning February 18 in Louisville, Kentucky.

The first show will take place less than two weeks after the release of A Different Kind of Truth, VH’s first album of new material with original singer David Lee Roth since 1984. The first single and video from the disc by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame act, “Tattoo,” are slated to drop on Tuesday.

The tour will feature support from legendary R&B act Kool & the Gang on select dates, with tickets going on sale on January 14. According to a press release, fans can expect to hear some new songs on the tour alongside some of the band’s most beloved tunes, including “Eruption,” “Running With the Devil,” the Kinks’ “You Really Got Me,” “Everybody Wants Some,” “Jump” and “Hot for Teacher.”

Van Halen’s original bass player and backing vocalist, Michael Anthony, was booted from the band in 2006 after 32 years and replaced by guitarist Eddie Van Halen’s teenage son, Wolfgang. After parting ways with Roth in 1985, Van Halen rebooted with singer Sammy Hagar in 1985, enjoying a string of hit albums and songs through 1996, when Hagar was shown the door and briefly replaced by former Extreme singer Gary Cherone, who only lasted three years in the slot. After bringing Hagar back in from 2003 to 2005, Van Halen invited Roth back into the fold several years ago and toured with him in 2007 and 2008.

Van Halen has signed to Interscope Records, a source with knowledge of the talks tells Rolling Stone. The news was first reported by the Hollywood Reporter, which wrote that Interscope chairman Jimmy Iovine was personally involved with the negotiations, and quoted an “insider” as saying, “He heard the band was available and wanted to work with them. It was decided at the eleventh hour.” The deal reportedly includes touring, merchandising, marketing and recording.

Rumors were swirling a few months ago that the band was going to sign with Columbia, but supposedly Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth didn’t want to sign with a label on the East Coast. “He was never on board [with Columbia],” the Hollywood Reporter’s source said. “It was as complicated as anyone would imagine, when one side says black, the other says white. The label was pretty skeptical that things would work out.”

Van Halen haven’t released an album of new material since 1998’s ill-fated Van Halen III, which featured Extreme’s Gary Cherone on vocals. They reunited with Sammy Hagar in 2004 for a tour, but shortly afterwards parted ways with the Red Rocker and founding bassist Michael Anthony. They toured in 2007 and 2008 with David Lee Roth and Eddie’s son teenage son Wolfgang Van Halen on bass. There have been numerous reports that the band was recording a new album over the past few years. It will be their first record with David Lee Roth since 1984.

If you believe the rumors, it’s a great time to be a Van Halen fan. With Chickenfoot’s new album, Chickenfoot III in stores on September 27th and the rumored David Lee Roth led Van Halen album completed, this fall could be very Van Halen heavy. Add in the Hurtsmile CD from Gary Cherone, who led the extremely underrated VH III, and there’s a whole lot of Van Halen-esque music available for ear consumption. (PS – if you haven’t heard Hurtsmile, you really should check it out).

There’s even a possibility that both Van Halen and Chickenfoot could be on tour at the same time. That idea got me thinking of what the ultimate Van Halen tour would be. While this is high fantasy at its most extreme, I ask you to indulge with me momentarily as we imagine what could be. How amazing would it be if the following actually happened? How much money would you pay to see this fantasy become a reality?

Van Halen on tour with Chickenfoot and Hurtsmile. Now, I know that it’s never going to happen. I know that there is way too much bad blood for this exceptional idea to grow into a completed tour. However, imagine if it did. This is how I would envision the scenario.

Hurtsmile would obviously open the evening. They could perform hits from their debut album and mix in a couple of Extreme classics. Chickenfoot would come out next (sorry Sammy fans, but this is Van Halen’s show all the way) and rip into their performance. Songs from both of their releases, perhaps a little Satriani solo, and maybe even a couple of solo Sammy songs for good measure. Then it would be time for the headliners of the evening – Van Halen. Performing nothing but classics and songs off their latest album, Van Halen would rule the stage. Then Eddie would provide a mind boggling, blistering solo that would wow the crowd like never before. And that would only be the beginning.

After all of that greatness, Eddie and Satriani would step out on stage together for the first “encore”. It would be dueling guitars as they went back and forth. Joe versus Ed. The crowd, if they hadn’t fainted by this point, would be roaring so loud that the roof might cave in.

Then it would be time for “encore” number two. Van Halen back on the stage with Michael Anthony on Bass and Gary Cherone on lead vocals. They could play a song off VH3 (which hasn’t been performed live in 13 years). Next out, would be Sammy to take over the mic. Cue up “Dreams” or some other such beloved Van Hagar song.

And then, the ending of all endings could occur. Diamond Dave would walk out on stage while Sammy, Michael, and Gary are still there. Enter Joe Satriani and Wolfgang, and lead us into the all-star jam to end all all-star jams! Eddie and Joe on lead guitar. Michael and Wolfgang on bass. Alex on drums. Sammy, Dave, and Gary trading versus on some superior classic rock song (probably a Led Zeppelin tune). How amazing would that be?

Now, I ask you honestly, how much would you pay to see that concert? I know that I would pay top dollar and then some. How about you?

From Rolling Stone.com:
Even Jeff Spicoli couldn’t have imagined a life this awesome: Wolfgang Van Halen, 17, spent last year on the road with his dad’s band Van Halen, playing bass on “Runnin’ With the Devil” and “Panama” to packed arenas — and he’s still on schedule to graduate from high school this June. “Wolfie had it the toughest on tour: he had three or four hours of [tutoring] every day, and then the gig,” says Eddie Van Halen. “I yanked him out of school for 11th grade, which is actually the most important year, because that’s what they go by for college. And the school said, ‘We’re not going to let him back in, if you pull him out, because we’ve never done that before.’ Well, first time for everything, dude, you know? They did let him back for 12th grade, because he wanted to graduate with his buddies.”

Wolfie plans to attend college at some point in the future, according to his dad: “He’s obviously going to Julliard or something like that — and they’ll take him at the drop of a hat, because he is ready. And the kid can act, too.” But for now? “He is a part of Van Halen. Permanently.”

That means Wolfgang is certainly a part of the band’s plans for a new album: In the current issue, Eddie Van Halen said he’s writing new songs for the next time Van Halen take the road. “I’ve got tons of music written, such a variety of stuff,” Eddie told Rolling Stone. “The essence of me is obviously there, and those drums, they’re always recognizable. But people expect a certain thing from Van Halen, and this isn’t exactly bang-your-head-against-the-wall stuff.”

According to RollingStone.com another Van Halen tour rider has been unearthed.

We finally have proof of the mother of all insane tour rider demands, Van Halen’s request for “No Brown M&M,” thanks to the Smoking Gun. Written in 1982 and coming in at an astounding 53 pages, the band’s oddball demands range from “herring in sour cream,” countless bottles of alcohol and a “large tube of KY jelly.” But it’s in the rider’s “Munchies” section where we find “M&Ms (Warning: Absolutely No Brown Ones),” meaning someone at each venue was given the job of plucking the brown M&Ms away from their yellow, green and orange candy-shelled counterparts. Keep in mind, this is 1982, so there were actually two shades of brown M&Ms at the time, with the standard brown and tan, which was eventually eliminated to make way for blue. That infamous request for no brown M&Ms spawned both an urban legend (now confirmed) and a joke in Wayne’s World 2. Why the outlandish demand? According to the Smoking Gun, “If brown M&M’s were in the backstage candy bowl, Van Halen surmised that more important aspects of a performance–lighting, staging, security, ticketing–may have been botched by an inattentive promoter.” Nowadays, Van Halen has moved away from banning brown M&Ms and instead request normal things like tutors and room to practice martial arts.

A new Sammy Hagar video has been leaked on Youtube. This new tune, “Cosmic Universal Fashion” was put together in the same fashion as Van Halen’s “Right Now” Video. This video also features, former Van Halen bassist, Michael Anthony.

Van Halen’s reunion tour came to Cincinnati Tuesday night. This show has been long awaited by myself and many of the fans in the area, especially since this rescheduled show was originally supposed to take place on March 5th. This show was postponed so Eddie Van Halen could take care of an undisclosed medical condition. ( Turf Toe?, Male Pattern Baldness?, Erectile disfunction? the world may never know.)

I never had the chance to see David Lee Roth with Van Halen, back in the early 80’s and I have always regretted it. I wouldn’t dare miss this reunion show, especially with how volatile the bands’ relationship has been over the years.

The questions I had going into this show were the following:

Will Michael Anthony be missed? Can David Lee Roth still sing?

Can Eddie Van Halen still get it done live? Is Van Halen worth the over inflated ticket price?

I have heard and read a lot of good and bad things about this tour, from the cities where it took place prior to Tuesday Night’s Show.

I opted for the cheaper seats for this show, and by cheap, I mean the $49.50 ticket before Ticketmaster added their extortion rates to the ticket price. With the huge video screen behind the stage, there truly wasn’t a bad seat to be had for this show. U.S. Bank Arena was at near capacity. If this wasn’t a sell out, it was damn close.

The Stage set up for Van Halen was quite cool. The stage was set up in a Giant S configuration. The bottom part of the S reached out into the stands, and circled the people in the pit close to the main stage. The lighting, and monsterous video screen were pretty cool, in fact the video screen greatly enhanced my view from my nosebleed seats.

So as far the Answers to my questions…….

Michael Anthony was definitely missed. At times I thought they may have used his recorded back up vocals. Michael always was one to run around the stage and get the crowd going. Wolfgang Van Halen is not. The kid can certainly play bass, and his Frankenstein paint scheme was pretty cool. The bad thing is, the kid doesn’t have any stage presence. None, zero, zilch. This will come in due time, but it isn’t there in 2008.

David Lee Roth was the surprise of the night for me. Diamond Dave sounds great. He can’t hit all of those high notes he used to, but his vocal performance was spot on.

Eddie Van Halen was pretty impressive and boring all at the same time. While his fretwork was second to none, he didn’t move from his position on stage. I don’t know if his legs were chained down to a certain area, but Eddie was center stage for 99% of the show. He moved very little, and certainly did not make use of the cool ramps they had on stage. His playing and solos were awesome, especially when he played Eruption, but his lack of energy was extremely disappointing.

Aside from David Lee Roth, Alex Van Halen had the most energy. His drumming was excellent all night, and his drum solo was very cool.

As a whole, Van Halen sounded awesome all night, they just didn’t have any energy on stage. Maybe I have been spoiled by seeing Airbourne’s high energy live show recently. Van Halen had about a tenth of the energy in their show that Airbourne had.

The energy from the crowd at U.S. Bank Arena was quite a different story. Tons of people were singing along and dancing. As a whole most people seemed to leave happy, and quite a few were hooting and hollering as they exited the arena.

So the Bottomline…..was Van Halen worth the ticket price. In my estimation, yes they were. I wouldn’t have paid the mega bucks required to sit on the floor ($150.00), but I was glad that I went. David Lee Roth called the band three quarters original, one quarter inevitable.

Maybe it was inevitable that Van Halen’s live performance would not quite live up to my expectations. The band is certainly past their prime. Van Halen is still one of the biggest hard rock bands to ever come from the United States. Past their prime or not, I am glad I got to see them with Roth as the singer for the first time. Even though they were not at their best, they still sounded great. The live music is what matters the most!

MTV.com reports that the reunited VAN HALEN have been forced to postpone four upcoming dates of their U.S. tour due to an unspecified medical condition affecting guitarist Eddie Van Halen. A statement issued by tour promoter Live Nation on Monday afternoon (March 3) explained that concerts in Dallas, Cincinnati, Baltimore and Raleigh, North Carolina, have been postponed and rescheduled for April.

“According to Eddie Van Halen’s physician, he is undergoing a battery of comprehensive medical tests to determine a defined diagnosis and recommended medical procedures,” read the release.

The March 3 show at American Airlines Arena in Dallas has been rescheduled for April 24; the March 5 show at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati has been moved to April 22; the March 7 show at RBC Center in Raleigh was shifted to April 13 and the March 9 show at 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore will now take place April 15, according to Pollstar.

Fans should retain their tickets as they will be honored at the rescheduled concerts or ticket refunds will be issued at the original point of purchase.

The Live Nation spokesperson said the tour is expected to pick up the previously scheduled dates beginning on March 11 in Charlottesville, Virginia, and, for now, no other dates have been affected.

I never expected to find a decent glam metal band in the Bluegrass State. This proves to me that quality glam bands can come from just about anywhere in the world.

Louisville, Kentucky’s Velcro Pygmies have been playing and touring clubs in the south for a few years now.

American Muscle is the band’s second CD, and a pretty good one at that. I can hear some definite Def Leppard and Van Halen influences in the band’s tunes.

There are several great original cuts on this disc as well as a fun cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Sweet Home Alabama.

Fans of 80’s style hard rock are going to love American Muscle. There isn’t a bad song on the disc. American Muscle is filled with songs that have infectious sing along choruses, and heavy guitar riffs. This is an 80’s style glam metal CD disc that simply delivers!

This CD hasn’t left my playlist since I picked up! This CD reminds of an era where music was supposed to be fun. The Velcro Pygmies may not be original, but they most certainly do 80’s style hard rock right! I think most hard rock fans are going to love this disc.

The band also has a brand new website, VelcroPygmies.com. Go check them out, you will be glad you did!

The video below is for the song Don’t Call It Love! Enjoy!!

Rating:Out of 10

Track Listing:
1. Sweet Miranda
2. Rich Bitch (All Over You)
3. Building Up To Feel So Good
4. Don’t Call It Love
5. Ready To Go
6. The Punchline of Pretty
7. Beauty In A Box
8. The Best It Ever Gets
9. Get Away
10. Sweet Home Alabama